Happy 5th Birthday Jake!

Jake had a great birthday party. I still can not believe he is 5- where has the time gone???

At one point, Jake said " Mommy, this is the best birthday I have ever had"! I think it was a success!! Thanks to everyone!!!

Here are some photos--- check out Jake when we were singing happy birthday- in the beginning he was thinking of his wish- and by the end- he was fully satisfied of his job well done blowing out the candles- the picture captured all his expressions perfectly!!!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter All!!

We had a very quiet Easter day today- Owen has been running a fever and has a cough- so we were trying to lay low.
The boys had a good time coloring eggs and trying to find their Easter baskets this year. This year. the Easter bunny hid some dinosaur eggs and they each received a soccer ball that was hidden- oh, and he got into the fridge' and nibbled on carrots, broccoli and some lettuce- He must have been hungry!!

I am excited as I have a very short work week coming up- only 3 days and we are hoping to get the house listed soon! Here are some recent pics from what is going on in our world lately

OuR bOYs

These boys of ours are the best! They are so much fun and among all the crazy things we are trying to accomplish, they just make us laugh!!!

I made smoothies last weekend and they were so yummy and the boys loved it! I will have to make them again- just needs some more frozen fruit! We also had a family fun night at their school - pancakes and board games!!

Someone soon is turning 5- wow, where has the time gone??? Gotta run- getting the house ready for realtors, Easter, and planning a special birthday party, for a very special boy!

Educating ourselves

Health Care reform was passed today, well, a major hurdle was made, and of course things are still being worked out....

In any event, it was a milestone day in American history no matter which "side" you are on.

I do not talk about this topic much, health care reform, not because I do not have an opinion, but because I can see both sides of the issue. I can see the patient side, the moral and ethical side and in some ways, I can also see the insurance and the medical cost side.
The issue has so many angles, and twists to it- in my opinion, it is very difficult to point a finger and then try and correct the issue.
Our health care is a SOCIOLOGICAL issue. If we have to hold certain groups accountable, then I also think we must also hold other factors and other corporations and groups just as accountable.
I am in the medical profession, and you could say the field I am in currently, is really at the forefront of the debate in so many ways. It really is the way of the future, unfortunately, it is also a necessity. It is a fairly new field of nursing ( when you think long term) and I wholeheartedly believe in the good and the service we provide. I really believe what we do makes a difference in the lives of people.
I hear all kinds of stories, good and bad. I have seen, in 14 years, all kinds of stories, abuse of the system ( by the very people the system serves) and there is a common denominator in a lot of the stories. People need to take responsibility and educate themselves about issues, whether it be their own personal health, their options in coverage, the way the "system works" etc
I am not saying I have the answers, or that I know all the ins and outs of health care - I do not. There are some things, I just do not have the time or the energy to educate myself about- but I do still believe it is important.

As you are reading this, I am sure, you are thinking "what the hell is she talking about" haha!
I just do not want to go into too many details and as this is a public blog and anyone can be reading it. I would be happy to explain my stance, or my "in the middle, undecided" stance anytime. Health Care reform is a very complicated issue- and I would say, the part "Reform" is being very hopeful..... since, in my opinion, we are only addressing 1 small piece of a very LARGE part of the problem ...
So here is to history, our history, and something else that we can say we were around for...

On a lighter note- we watched New Moon ( 2nd part of the Twilight series) and it was pretty good- I am looking forward to Eclipse - it will be out 6/30/10 and no, I am not 12 years old, but I am on Team Edward!!!! ; )

Also, we watched Life, on the Discovery channel tonight- Excellent!! Also, we watched, Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution- sneak peek tonight. I kind of expected what I saw, but still shocking, scary - and kind of goes with what I was talking about the first half of my post!

Have a great and healthy week everyone! Also, spring is coming- - this is an old picture, but I do see my tulips coming through the mulch- always a good sign!

"The Haircut" and Happy St. Patrick's Day

Something got into Rob the other night..... not sure what..... but he decided to cut Owen's hair.
Needless to say, when I found out, I wasn't too pleased, in fact, the more I thought about it- the more upset I got.

Rob was trying to get the hair out of Owen's eyes and decided he needed a little trim. However, he did not end up with a trim.....

I was a little upset with Rob because I wanted to be there, plus, I really think Owen deserved a professional haircut..... This wasn't Owen's first official haircut, he did get one before slightly
( remember our little dutch boy in a previous post) .

Not bad for Rob, who hasn't been trained..... the only issue was the front- but, hair grows .... and Owen seems to like it- he keeps pointing to his head and saying "daddy "
Check it out- and check out some new shamrock shades they received in the mail from Grandma and Grandpa G.

to do list

* give myself a break- it will all get done when it gets done

*have patience, things happen for a reason

*hug the boys the next time I see them- I so miss them!

*create something - I am missing this in my life- and it shows

* make time to exercise- give this special gift to me- or else my body will break and that sucks

*spend less time watching meaningless TV and more time reading

* stay awake to read, or I will not get very far

* read more interesting books, and maybe I would stay awake

* feed the body more organic

*drink more water- it needs it

* plan to color this weekend in the coloring books again- because it is fun, the smell of crayons is priceless and creating art with the boys is inspiring

* get outside and build up the vitamin D- I obviously need it

*make cookies from scratch- how long has that been????

*practice what I preach every day at work

*act silly more, it is good for me

*be less serious, not everything has to be serious all the time

*take a nap

*have fun

For the last few weekends, we have been going thru our home and spring cleaning, organizing, donating, recycling and pitching "stuff". It has been liberating, a pain in the ass, and tiring all at the same time.

Today, we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

We went through the kids rooms and went through their clothes- handed down the stuff that was too small for J and gave to O, and then the stuff that was too small for O, we either donated or I put it in a bin to save. This pains me, as part of me really would like to donate the clothes, but the other part of me, wants to wait, since we are not 100% sure we are not going to have any more kids.
I kept all the stuff that is in good shape- as the boys get older though, their clothes get dirtier and they do not look as new once they are grown out of it.
We did manage to fill 2 garbage bags of clothes.
It was stuff that I either bought at a garage sale, or were not in the best shape, but still "donateable".

The only thing that is left to do- is the loft, the kids bathroom closet- and these are both jobs that are not too bad. We are hoping all of this work is all worth it in the end.
It has been a real challenge for us and of course it takes our time away from spending good quality time with the kids so I am glad to have this done very soon.....

Along the way, we have come across some funny stuff..... check it out above- and I am trying to find my incense burner, but can not- I may have already donated that before???
Eileen- the one we bought at Phoenix Traders- is awful- we couldn't take it- it burned the incense so fast we might as well been taking a direct hit off of it..... in fact, I really think, that is the true use of the "wine glass incense bottle" kind of like Trails in Tempe- you know, the thing Dad asked for ( or maybe we tried to get him to ask) and was corrected by the sales person????

Anyhow- enjoy some pics and Owen- I think he has looks on his face- thinking "how did I wind up with these kooky parents and crazy brother" His look above says it all......